The Tunisian–Algerian War of 1813 was a conflict between the

Regency of Algiers The Regency of Algiers was an Early modern period, early modern semi-independent Administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman province and nominal Tributary states of the Ottoman Empire, vassal state on the Barbary Coast of North Afr ...

and the

Regency of Tunis Ottoman Tunisia, also known as the Regency of Tunis, refers to a territory of Ottoman Empire that existed from the 16th to 19th century in what is largely modern-day Tunisia. During the period of Ottoman Rule, Tunis was administratively inte ...

Background

Since the Naval War of 1811,

Diplomatic relations Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of state, intergovernmental, or non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern Diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. ...

between Algiers and Tunis were disrupted by preparations and hostilities near the common border. Both sides were had a significant military presence nearby, in both Kef and Constantine. Although the idea of a peaceful settlement was embraced by both nations, on July 24, 1812, Algiers imposed a

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are ...

of 19 sailboats on the port of

La Goulette La Goulette (, ), in Arabic Halq al-Wadi ( '), is a municipality and the port of Tunis, Tunisia. La Goulette is located at around on a sandbar between Lake of Tunis, Lake Tūnis and the Gulf of Tunis. The port, located 12km east of Tunis, is th ...

, situated in the northern part of Tunis. The imposition of the blockade was a manifestation of oppression against the Dey

Hammuda ibn Ali Abu Mohammed Hammuda ibn Ali Pasha (9 December 1759 – 15 September 1814) () was the fifth leader of the Husainid dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 26 May 1782 until his death on 15 September 1814. He was the son of Ali II ibn Hussein. He ...

, On August 10 the Admiral of Algiers, who was charged with the blockade, sent a letter from the Dey Hadj Ali in which he offered to sign a definitive

peace treaty A peace treaty is an treaty, agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually country, countries or governments, which formally ends a declaration of war, state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an ag ...

only if the Regency recognized the suzerainty of Algiers. Although the proposal was declined, Hammuda, who desired peace between the two nations, sent a cargo of oil to the Dey for the mosques in the capital. The Algerian ships, still blockading the port, did not take any aggressive action for a couple of days. During that time the port were increased and had been placed in a state of readiness. The Tunisian army had strengthened their defense In

Kef KEF is a British company that produces high-end audio products, including HiFi speakers, subwoofers, architecture speakers, wireless speakers, and headphones. It was founded in Maidstone, Kent, in 1961 by a BBC engineer Raymond Cooke (1925– ...

and its surroundings. The border fortification was the idea of the Tunisian Prime Minister, Youssef Sahab et-taba, who recently took the command of the Tunisian army. On the other side of the border in

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I * Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine g ...

, the Bey of Constantine, Mohammed Nàmane, gathered a huge quantity of ammunition and troops in the city as well. This proved to be unnecessary since the Algerians began the offensive in La Goulette.

War

On July 23, 1813, The

Algerian navy The Algerian Naval Force (ANF; , ) is the naval branch of the Algerian military. The naval force operates from multiple bases along the country's nearly coastline, fulfilling its primary role of monitoring and defending Algeria's territorial water ...

bolstered its forces at the port of La Goulette, numbering 54

sailboats A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

and 25

Gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

s. The Algerian force managed to deal considerable damage to the Fort, but was forced to retreat to Algiers on August 4 after suffering considerable damage. This would lead to a surprise invasion of the Beylik of Costantine. A couple of days later, Youssef launched an invasion of the Province but was pushed back by Nàmane, who successfully gathered enough troops to repel the Tunisians back across to the other side of the border. The two regencies suffered from terrible economic crises who were using all of their resources, all thought, The Tunisians were worried about the re imposition of the blockade or another invasion of Kef the following season. This led to the construction of another 60

s. On the Tunisian side however, Youssef managed to build a large army in Kef, with more than 40,000 Troops ready for the second invasion.{{Cite book , last=Rousseau , first=Alphonse , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZbV8-JMf76MC&pg=PA288 , title=Annales tunisiennes: ou apercu historique sur la regence de Tunis , date=1864 , publisher=Bastide , language=fr The war finally ended in December 1813, when the old Hammuda Pasha agreed to a peace, before dying on September 15, 1814.

References

Algerian–Tunisian wars 19th century in Tunisia 19th century in the Regency of Algiers 1813 in Africa Conflicts in 1813